The Multi-year Expert Meeting on Commodities and Development aims to monitor developments, challenges and opportunities in commodity markets, giving due attention to those commodity sectors that are relevant to commodity-dependent developing countries.
Discussions serve to inform member States of important developments in key commodity sectors and markets from a development perspective.
Commodity price volatility: implications for trade and development
The expert meeting will focus on commodity price volatility and its implications for trade and development, in response to priorities expressed by member states. It will examine recent trends in price volatility across both agricultural and extractive commodities and assess their economic, social, and trade impacts on developing countries.
The discussion will highlight the increasing vulnerability of commodity-dependent economies to global shocks, climate change, and geopolitical disruptions. Drawing on evidence and experiences from various countries, the meeting will identify practical short- and long-term policy options for managing and mitigating volatility for both exporters and importers. These options may include domestic support measures, financial and risk-management instruments, value addition, diversification strategies, climate adaptation, and enhanced domestic and regional production.
The meeting aims to contribute to a forward-looking agenda that enhances resilience and supports inclusive and sustainable development in commodity-dependent economies. The goal is to foster value addition, economic diversification, and better integration of developing countries into supply and value chains.
Participation
This session is open to all member States of UNCTAD. Other organizations, including specialized agencies, intergovernmental bodies and non-governmental organizations in the general and special categories, as well as academia and the private sector, may participate as observers.
Registration
Online registration is mandatory for all those wishing to attend the meeting and is required in order to be included in the list of participants.
Logistics
The session will be held in person at the Palais des Nations. Those who cannot attend the meeting in person will be able to listen to the live audio stream in the six official languages of the United Nations.
The link to listen live will be sent to registered participants, at the email address used for registration, one day in advance of the start of the session.
Mr. Pedro Manuel Moreno of Spain is the Deputy Secretary-General and Acting Secretary-General of UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD).
He has over 20 years of experience of working for multilateral and intergovernmental organizations in programme, management and strategic positions both in the field and at headquarters.
He was Deputy Secretary-General of the Communication for Development Committee at the Spanish National Commission with the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (1999-2004), and for the United Nations Development Programme, at the Country Office in Ecuador and, in New York City, as part of the Human Development Report team, at the Regional Bureau for Latin America and the Caribbean and at the Executive Office.
In 2014, he was appointed Chief of Staff of the Ibero-American Conference in Madrid, where he coordinated key political processes and South-South cooperation projects.
In September 2021, he was named Chief of Staff and Director of the Office of the Secretary-General of UNCTAD.
Luz Maria de la Mora is the Director of UNCTAD's Division on International Trade and Commodities. As a former Vice-Minister for International Trade and decades of government and private sector positions, Ms. de la Mora developed a career in international trade policy, negotiation, operations, and trade promotion.
During her tenure as Vice-Minister for International Trade of Mexico from 2018 to 2022, Ms. de la Mora led Mexico's trade and investment policy, overseeing fourteen free trade agreements with 51 countries. To bolster Mexico's development, she steered discussions in the World Trade Organization, the United States-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement, Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and Pacific Alliance, among others. She also coordinated policy dialogues and handled private sector consultations.
Ms. de la Mora holds a PhD in Political Science from Yale University, USA, a Master's degree in International Affairs from Carleton University, Canada, and a Bachelor's degree in International Relations from El Colegio de México, Mexico.
She is fluent in English and Spanish, and proficient in French.
Rodrigo Cárcamo Díaz is Chief (a.i.) at the Commodities Policy Implementation Section of United Nations Trade and Development (UNCTAD) in Geneva, Switzerland.
During his more than two decades of experience working on different development issues, he has authored different publications on development issues, including journal articles, a book, book chapters and research papers. His current research interests are focused on sustainable agricultural value chains for export in developing countries.
He also leads capacity-building projects on this topic in different developing countries, organizes international policy dialogue events, and represents UNCTAD in different international fora linked to agricultural commodities, trade and development issues.
He holds an MPhil in Economics from the University of Oxford, and a Diploma in Statistics from the Universidad Católica de Chile.
Arnaud Petit was appointed Executive Director of the International Grains Council (IGC) in February 2018. IGC is an intergovernmental organisation based in London offering independent analysis on grains, oilseeds and rice markets to its member governments to promote international trade in grains. It also provides information to non-government subscribers.
IGC provides an important international platform for discussions between policy makers and the private sector. It also serves as the Secretariat for the Food Assistance Committee helping to facilitate networking within the donor community to improve the efficacy of food assistance.
From 2005- 2017 Mr. Petit worked at the European Farmers and agri-cooperatives Union (Copa-Cogeca), as Director for Commodities and Trade. He was also a Member of the Executive Committee of the European Technology Platform “Plants for the future” (2009-2017) and a Member of the Experts Group on EU-US trade negotiations at the European Commission (2014-2017).
From 2000 -2005 he served as Policy Advisor for European Affairs at the National Chamber for Agriculture in Paris, and Deputy Member of the European Economic and Social Committee (2000-2005).
He holds an M.A. in Agricultural Economics from the International Center for Advanced Mediterranean Agronomic Studies, Montpellier – France.
Mr. Sergio René Araujo-Enciso is an Economist at the Medium-Term Outlook and Market Analysis Team at the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO). Mr. Araujo-Enciso contributes with market and policy analyses to various pieces of work and publications, including the OECD-FAO Agricultural Outlook. In addition, he also has sound experience in economic modelling. Before joining FAO, Mr. Araujo-Enciso was a research fellow at the European Commission Joint Research Centre (EU-JRC) based in Seville Spain, and a research assistant at the George August Gottingen University in Germany, where he gained his PhD degree.
Danyira is an Economist at UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) with expertise in economic research, macroeconomic modeling and forecasting. Prior to joining UNCTAD, she held staff positions at the United Nations Department of Economic and Social Affairs (UN DESA) in New York, in the private sector in Argentina and at the Central Bank of Venezuela. She holds a bachelor’s degree in economics from Universidad de Los Andes and a master’s degree in applied economics from Universidad Católica Andres Bello.
Mr. Andrey Kuleshov, CFA, specializes in development economics and finance. He has over 30 years experience in financing agriculture, global value chains, impact investing and technology. He is currently heading Strategy and Development at the Common Fund for Commodities (Amsterdam). His current interests include impact management strategies, SDG and ESG driven financing instruments, economics of commodity value chains. Previously he worked at Oxford Economics (Oxford) and the House of Commons (London). He holds an MSc in Economics from the London School of Economics and Political Science (1994) and a Masters’ in applied mathematics from the Moscow Institute of Physics and Technology (1989). He further holds a charter of the CFA Institute since 2001.
Lorena Ruiz is an Economist at the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC), an intergovernmental organization that promotes international cooperation and transparency in the cotton sector through market analysis, research, and policy dialogue. She has over 20 years of experience in agricultural commodity markets, specializing in cotton market analysis, international trade, price forecasting, and agricultural policy.
At ICAC, her work focuses on global cotton supply and demand, price developments, government support measures, and trends in textile fiber consumption. She contributes to the organization's market reports and economic publications, as well as international research initiatives with organizations such as FAO and the World Bank.
Before joining ICAC in 2014, she served as Chief Economist at Colombia's National Cotton Growers Association (CONALGODÓN), focusing on market analysis, pricing, and agricultural policy.
Alexandra Laurent has worked on commodity-related issues at the Commodities Branch, Division on International Trade and Commodities, UN Trade and Development (UNCTAD) since 2001. Her work has focused on improving transparency and access to information on agricultural, mineral and energy commodity markets, supporting evidence-based policymaking in commodity-dependent developing countries. She initiated UNCTAD's Commodities at a Glance series and the State of Commodity Dependence Report series. In 2026, she led the development of the State of Commodity Dependence Dashboard, an interactive platform designed to improve access to data and analysis on commodity dependence worldwide.
Stefan Csordas is an Economic Affairs Officer in the Extractive Commodities Section of the Division on International Trade and Commodities at UNCTAD. He has more than 15 years of experience in economic research, development finance and international cooperation with a focus on international trade and commodity markets. Before joining UNCTAD he held staff positions at the World Bank in Washington DC, GIZ in Berlin and the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa in Addis Ababa. He holds a PhD in economics from the University of Basel and master’s degrees from the University of Vienna and the Vienna University of Technology.
Guillaume Albasini is an independent consultant in the mining, metals and energy sectors. Previously, he was a research officer at the CRES Foundation in Geneva where he carried out various studies on the geopolitics of energy and raw materials and the challenges faced by producing countries. He is a graduate in political science from the University of Lausanne and holder of a Master in international relations from the Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies in Geneva. His most recent research focuses on the impact of the energy transition on demand for energy and mining commodities.
Alexander Bressers is a Senior Oil Market Analyst at the International Energy Agency (IEA), where his primary focus is on global oil demand and prices. Before joining the IEA in 2022, he worked for fifteen years as a commodity portfolio manager and futures trader for a number of banks and investment funds, developing quantitative trading strategies in the energy and agricultural markets. He holds a Master’s degree in economics from the Erasmus University in Rotterdam.
Jean-Christian Heintz is Managing Director at Wideangle LNG. He has a 25-year technical and commercial experience in Natural Gas and LNG. He spent the first 15 years of his career with Engie (formerly known as GDF Suez) where after a pipeline infrastructure background he held various LNG trading and contract management roles involving Norway, Trinidad, Algeria and Chile. He then became Head of LNG at Lugano-based DXT Commodities (2013), Geneva-based SCB Brokers (2019) and Swiss power producer Alpiq (2020), each time building desks from scratch. Jean-Christian is now working full time as an independent advisor for a variety of customers worldwide. He regularly organises training courses for LNG majors and new entrants in Europe, Africa and Asia. Jean-Christian is a member of Gastech Governing Body, a regular speaker and panelist at conferences worldwide.
Marnix van Holland is an energy and climate expert at the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO). Marnix’ career started in the creative industries running a youth hub and setting up various business initiatives in the Netherlands (most of which failed). After a short career at the Netherlands Embassy in Malaysia, he joined international NGO Hivos in 2012 and developed himself as an expert on Entrepreneurship Ecosystems, innovative finance solutions and support in the Global South. He has experience as a Program Development Manager in various sectors of business support throughout the African continent and Southeast Asia. After living out of his suitcase for a couple years and living in a variety of countries across the African continent, he migrated to Zimbabwe where he developed and managed a variety of programs in the food and (renewable) energy sector for 4 years. In 2021 he moved back to the Netherlands to work for the Netherlands Enterprise Agency (RVO) on the universal access to energy agenda (SDG 7).
Abdoulkarim Saidali is an Associate Economist in the International Trade and Commodities Division at UNCTAD, where he focuses on economic research addressing key development challenges.
Abdoulkarim Saidali has contributed to a diverse range of publications exploring critical issues such as access to agricultural inputs in Togo's cotton sector, the digital practices of informal enterprises in Senegal, and the price volatility of minerals essential for the energy transition, along with their impact on the economic development of producing countries.
Abdoulkarim Saidali holds an engineering degree in applied statistics and economics from the Institut National de Statistique et d'Économie Appliquée in Rabat, and a master’s degree in development and population economics from the University of Bordeaux.
Fiama Angeles Bonelli is a Senior Trade Policy Analyst at the St.Gallen Endowment. For the Global Trade Alert initiative, she publishes trade and industrial policy changes across the world, authors policy briefs, provides operational support and participates in outreach activities. She previously served as an official and economic analyst in the Peruvian government, including the Ministries of Economy and Finance, Industry, and Foreign Trade and Tourism. Fiama holds a master's degree in International Affairs from the Geneva Graduate Institute (IHEID), with a specialisation in trade, and a Licentiate degree in Economics and International Business (Universidad ESAN).
Julio Kunda Muya is Acting Head of Division in charge of commodities at the Department of Multilateral and Regional Trade Agreements, Ministry of Foreign Trade, Democratic Republic of the Congo. Julio has worked for several years at this Ministry and officially hold the position of Chef de Bureau. He holds a Master's degree in Global ICT Policy from PUSAN National University in South Korea, an advanced postgraduate diploma in Trade Policy and international trade law from the African Trade Policy Training Center in Arusha (Tanzania) and Lund University in Sweden, as well as a Licence (BAC+5) in applied computing from the Higher Institute of Computer Sciences, Programming and Analysis in Kinshasa. Julio represents his country to various international and regional organizations (such as the WTO, UNCTAD, UNCITRAL, SADC, etc.)
Maggie Xu is Chief Executive Officer of the Zayed Private Office in Abu Dhabi, a Belgian national recognised under the UAE’s Special Talents category in investment. She has extensive experience in finance and energy strategy, engaging with state-owned enterprises, government shareholders and financial institutions. Her work focuses on long-term energy procurement, cross-border trade finance and investment operations between the Gulf and Asia. She holds a Global Executive MBA from INSEAD and is a member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (CIArb).
Clovis Freire Junior is Chief of Extractive Commodities Section, of the Division on International Trade and Commodities of UNCTAD in Geneva. He is an Economist specialized in economic diversification and strategies for building productive capacities in developing countries. His work supports the structural transformation and sustainable development of commodity-dependent developing countries.
He has over 20 years of work experience in the United Nations in programmes related to commodity dependence, least developed countries, technology and innovation for development, and disaster risk reduction. He holds a degree in Computer Engineering from the Technological Institute of Aeronautics (ITA), Brazil, a Master’s degree in Computer Sciences from the University de Brasília (UnB), an MBA in Strategic Management of Information Systems from the Fundação Getúlio Vargas (FGV), Brazil, and a PhD in Economics from the Maastricht University, in Maastricht, the Netherlands.
Dr. Ekpen Omonbude is a Senior Policy Advisor focused on the financial benefits of mining within the IGF’s Global Mining Tax Initiative. Ekpen is a trained economist specializing in the energy and extractives sector, with more than 15 years of providing advice and expertise in various roles. Before joining the International institute for Sustainable Development (IISD), he held positions with the Commonwealth Secretariat, as well as in academia and industry. Ekpen holds a doctorate in petroleum policy and economics and a master's in energy studies, both from the University of Dundee, Scotland. He also has a master's of business administration from the University of Abertay, Scotland, and a bachelor’s of science in economics and statistics from the University of Benin, Nigeria.
Dr. Anabel Marín is a Research Fellow and Leader of the Business, Markets & State Cluster at the Institute of Development Studies (IDS) and a researcher at CONICET in Argentina (currently on leave). She holds a PhD in Science and Technology Policy from the University of Sussex, a Master’s in Development from the University of General Sarmiento, and a degree in Economics from Córdoba University.
Her research focuses on the political economy of natural resources, sustainability transitions, and green industrial policy, combining academic leadership with high-level policy engagement in Latin America, Europe, and Africa. She has led multi-country research and impact projects funded by organisations such as ESRC, the Global Consortium for Sustainability Outcomes, and the Conservation Food and Health Foundation, and has advised institutions including the World Bank, ECLAC, IDB, UNCTAD, UNESCO, and UNIDO.
Her recent publications include a contribution to the Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Climate Science on sustainable development in Latin America (Marin, Möhle & Aneise, 2025), as well as articles on civic resistance, governance, and green industrial policy in the IDS Bulletin (2025), IDS Working Paper (2025), and Environmental Research Letters (2025). In 2025, she was awarded the Premio RAÍCES by the Argentine Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation for her contributions to science and international cooperation.
John Sloan is an Economist with the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa. He specializes in mineral-industrial policy, focusing on building economic linkages with resource-based activities. He has worked for fifteen years with the United Nations in Addis Ababa, Beirut and New York, covering further topics such as trade, conflict and the SDGs. Prior to this, he worked on education policy at the World Bank. Mr. Sloan is a Fulbright Scholar, and holds a Master’s Degree from the London School of Economics, and a Bachelor’s Degree from the University of Michigan.
